Enjoying winter break?
So are we. NACAC offices are closed Dec. 24 through Jan. 1.
Check back for a new post on Jan. 2. Until then, enjoy these top stories from 2018.
10 Must-Read Blogs from 2018
Monthly Archives: December 2018
Register for NACAC’s Advocacy Meeting
Registration is now open for NACAC’s annual Advocacy Meeting, scheduled March 3-4 in Washington, DC.
Visits with members of Congress will serve as the focal point of the two-day event. Attendees will also have the opportunity to engage with NACAC leadership, members, and staff.
Department of Education Releases Online PSLF Tool
Think you may qualify for Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF)? A new tool from the Department of Education can help you determine your eligibility.
The PSLF program was established in 2007 with the intent to reward public service employees who meet certain requirement by forgiving their student loan debt. In order to qualify for Public Service Loan Forgiveness, student loan borrowers must work full-time at a qualifying government or nonprofit organization and make 120 qualifying payments.
Continue reading Department of Education Releases Online PSLF Tool
Transition to College Can be Challenging for Rural Students
The faces of rural education in America are changing, but the challenges these students encounter in earning a college degree have not.
Universities have been slow to recognize these issues, but programs for supporting rural students are starting to crop up across the country.
“We never really came to terms with the fact that they needed extra support,” Naomi Norman, associate vice president for instruction at the University of Georgia, told NPR.
Though rural students graduate from high school at higher rates than urban students and at about the same levels as suburban students, only 59 percent go straight to college. And even if they enroll, they are more likely to drop out than their suburban and urban counterparts.
Continue reading Transition to College Can be Challenging for Rural Students
Reflections on a College Tour
Editor’s note: A version of post was first published on Counselors’ Corner.
I had a first in my college counseling career last week when I went on an organized multi-college tour. When you’re the only person in your office—as I was for so long—getting away to see colleges is, at best, a one-day commitment, so the idea of taking an entire week away from the office to see nine college campuses was new to me. It also left me wondering if I could follow the advice I offer my students—to write down your impressions the minute the tour is over, so you don’t confuse the qualities of one campus with the features of another.
It turns out I didn’t have too much to worry about in that department. This tour has been going on for ages and those in charge leave no detail to chance. We were greeted with an itinerary that would have made any logistics expert shed a tear of joy, including a booklet that included a summary of the essential statistics and vital qualities of each school. I was free to add my own notes in the ample notes section in the back, but even if I didn’t, there was no way I was going home with nine schools jumbled in my head.
Overall, the experience taught or reminded me of three things about this profession, all lessons that were timely.
2018 NACAC Gift Guide
Haven’t found the perfect gift for your admission colleagues yet?
The 2018 NACAC Gift Guide is here to help you spread holiday cheer now and throughout the year.
#NACACreads: Change Needed to Better Serve At-Risk Students
Building trust and working to transform campus culture are two steps counselors can take to better support today’s students, according to author Karen Gross.
Gross—who served as president of Southern Vermont College for eight years—offered those suggestions Wednesday during a far-reaching #NACACreads Twitter discussion of her most recent release, Breakaway Learners: Strategies for Post-Secondary Success with At-Risk Students.
In her book, Gross makes the case that America’s youth are changing, but schools and colleges have been to slow to adapt to their needs. In particular, the road to and through higher education remains filled with barriers for low-income students, first-generation students, and students who have experienced trauma.
Continue reading #NACACreads: Change Needed to Better Serve At-Risk Students
#NACACreads: Transcript of Chat with Author Karen Gross
On Dec. 12, #NACACreads chatted with Karen Gross about her book, Breakaway Learners . The book calls on college counselors and others to rethink the ways they help students prepare for life beyond high school.
Couldn’t make the discussion? Use this chat transcript to catch up on what you missed.
Continue reading #NACACreads: Transcript of Chat with Author Karen Gross
Could Enhanced Advising Help More Students Find a Right-Fit Major?
It’s no secret that switching majors can increase the time and money a student spends earning a degree. But college officials say it’s a scenario more and more undergrads are now facing.
According to federal data, a third of all college students change their major at least once. Ten percent of students switch paths two or more times.
Carol Jean Vale, president of Chestnut Hill College (PA), attributes the shift to a rise in college access. As more first-generation students enter college, they need different types of support, she told The Hechinger Report.
Continue reading Could Enhanced Advising Help More Students Find a Right-Fit Major?
Join Us Tomorrow Night for #NACACreads
What can we do to better serve at-risk students in our high schools and on our college campuses?
Share your insights tomorrow night during a special #NACACreads chat with Karen Gross, author of Breakaway Learners.
Packed with strategies to aid counselors in higher ed, as well as those working in K-12 schools and community-based organizations, the book calls on college counselors and others to rethink the ways they help students prepare for life beyond high school.